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Deluge Threatens Iron-Ore Mining Heartland

By

David Fickling

Updated Jan. 13, 2011 10:43 a.m. ET

SYDNEY—The deluge inundating Australia's Queensland state could be just the beginning of a record wet season for the country, with forecasters warning Thursday that bad weather is likely to spread to the ore-rich Pilbara region.

Most of Western Australia's Pilbara region, which is responsible for a third of global iron-ore exports, has a 70% chance of excess rainfall over the coming three months, the Bureau of Meteorology said.